I apologize in advance for the brevity of this letter, but wanted to inform you all right away that we are planning to release patch 1.18 on July 21 (PST).

All that’s left is the balancing and debugging of the two instanced raids. (There’s no guarantee all future instances will fit the definition of “dungeon,” and it’d just be ridiculous and flat out wrong to call something that isn’t a dungeon a dungeon, right? But even a small party of people can raid a given location, dungeon or otherwise. Just sayin’.) But things are preeetty tight, so there may be a 1- or 2-day delay.

Sorry to all of you who are waiting, but we want to make sure the debugging is done right before releasing this content, so bear with us just a bit longer. That’s it for now. Time to get back to work!

As happy as i am that they are rechecking there work before throwing it out there to the public, it still givew off bad tast, pointing to one of 2 things (a) a massive surge of content, or more likely (b) a lack or work force behind it all. Least that what it looks to me.

Seriously, how much can ppl complain? so they are reassuring the fact they want to make sure things are in place so it might be delayed again. Would you prefer they do what they did from the beginning and give you a half-a$$ update full of bugs similar to how the game was launched? And not only that but a massive emergency update? If we have learned anything from FFXI, that's normal as is. But at least be glad they are taking the time to at least do it for once. At least they are trying, give them some props for that. It's been bad enough they been working on a polished **** as some like to put it. So far the changes to the game have been good. Not one thing alone is going to change everything to make or break the game.

Sorry, its annoying to see ppl complain when most of the changes up to date have been positive so far, and hopefully some of this changes will make it even better, even if I personally don't look forward to some of the changes. Personally I would love it if they worked on the targetting, but thats a whole different subject. I'm very glad they have given us an estimated date.

It's nice to see this kind of communication, even though it can be somewhat considered bad news.

I just can't help but wonder.. if this idea of a 'golden patch' hadn't gotten so popular, would we have seen the changes in 1.18 implemented already in smaller updates over a period of time leading up to the 21st? It seems Yoshi P is all in with this golden patch idea, meanwhile we have to wait longer for large scale updates. Maybe that's the idea and it'll bring in some good publicity, I dunno. All I know is I'm probably not logging in until the 21st.

It's nice to see this kind of communication, even though it can be somewhat considered bad news.

I just can't help but wonder.. if this idea of a 'golden patch' hadn't gotten so popular, would we have seen the changes in 1.18 implemented already in smaller updates over a period of time leading up to the 21st? It seems Yoshi P is all in with this golden patch idea, meanwhile we have to wait longer for large scale updates. Maybe that's the idea and it'll bring in some good publicity, I dunno. All I know is I'm probably not logging in until the 21st.

Anyone with realistic expectations will not consider 1.18 as a "Golden Patch", at best you might consider 1.18+1.19(+1.20 even) as a golden "collection of patches" but expecting to have one alone is just not realistic.

true but due to the time its has taken this should be the biggest single change we have seen and should have a bigger impact that those patches (if they do in fact come out "up until the end of summer")

Perhaps we should call it the "Golden patch to restore the faith of the community" and not "Golden patch to suddenly correct all gripes we have"

It's nice to see this kind of communication, even though it can be somewhat considered bad news.

I just can't help but wonder.. if this idea of a 'golden patch' hadn't gotten so popular, would we have seen the changes in 1.18 implemented already in smaller updates over a period of time leading up to the 21st? It seems Yoshi P is all in with this golden patch idea, meanwhile we have to wait longer for large scale updates. Maybe that's the idea and it'll bring in some good publicity, I dunno. All I know is I'm probably not logging in until the 21st.

Now I'm not quoting you to bash you not one bit... But I remember strolling through the forums and seeing people complaining about the fact that they 'are releasing a patch just to keep up with promises of quantity.' I want to say somewhere between the 1.16 and 1.17c area. I was unable to find the exact quote. The fact was that if they were releasing a little bit at a time, people were not satisfied content wise (nor the fact that they had to download every patch that has ever been in order to get a new targeting system), and were wishing they would just wait and release one big patch rather than 3 sub patches. So really the earlier criticism has paid off.

Here's a few tips for everybody that will help clear your mindset and stop turning away newcomers

1. They launched a badhorribleunfinished **** game. We know it, they know it. Get over it. It should not be a reminder at every corner for everything they do, nor should it be an excuse though either.

2. Imagine this: You are living in your home and decide you want to have it changed completely, while keeping the house the same from say, the outside. The workers come in and you let them know you will still be living in the house while they overhaul the whole house. This means that they have to do all the work slowly and meticulously, because every step would involve making sure that you can still go about your normal life. It's going to take a lot longer to move the plumbing pipes from where the bathroom used to be to where it will be.

3. Community overhaul: I don't know about most of you, but coming from ffxi, I tried Aion, EvE and Rift. All 3 were excellent games in their own respect (loved EvE). But i gave up 3 finished, great games because they lacked that community that we had in FFXI. I have watched (at least the ZAM base) dwindle to a bunch of cranky downraters and trolls. Don't forget where we come from. A community can make or break a game just as easily as poor development can.

4. Constructive feedback: They are watching us. You know... They, them. What do you do when a kid whines and complains about everything? You quit listening to the whining because you know they will always whine. If you want Yoshi to continue to listen to us, then do your part. Provide constructive criticism and feedback. Don't lose your cool if your issues aren't adressed. Simply whining will get you nowhere, and just starts flameposts.

5. HELP NOOBS: Remember how confusing your first day was in this game? I see so many posts where people are asking about the state of the game and everyone is basically saying 'wait for 1.18.' I understand the complaints about the clunky UI, the market wards, lack of things to do, ect ect. But telling a new player who is in the market for an MMO to wait a month is a good chance of losing a player. I'm not saying to white knight this game, but lets start being a little more optimistic. These forums seem more and more like a bunch of people who don't want to play the game. A big part of this game is making your connections early on with your game family that will most likely provide long term friendships. Anyone who made a new character on XI after abyssia may understand the feeling of trying to get back in the game.

Those are just a few things. Inc flames for Great Wall of Text. I generally don't post unless I feel strongly about something, not just to quick reply or flame someone. I leave that to you, the great flamers of ZAM, to sub default me for bringing up a few points of view of my own.

Anyone with realistic expectations will not consider 1.18 as a "Golden Patch", at best you might consider 1.18+1.19(+1.20 even) as a golden "collection of patches" but expecting to have one alone is just not realistic.

At this rate there is zero chance everything on the list from letter 10(?) will be finished this summer, like Yoshi claimed it would be. I like the fact that there has been a good amount of info posted during the last couple of weeks, but that still doesn't make up for the fact that these updates are taking a ridiculous amount of time. With everything else that's planned, like jobs (mark my words, it will be 2012 before that happens), and the giant issue with the overall lameness of the maps, when will we get a finished product? Seriously, I think Yoshi must be the world's most talented puppetmaster, because he is stringing us all along quite brilliantly.

Anyone with realistic expectations will not consider 1.18 as a "Golden Patch", at best you might consider 1.18+1.19(+1.20 even) as a golden "collection of patches" but expecting to have one alone is just not realistic.

Anyone with realistic expectations will not consider 1.18 as a "Golden Patch", at best you might consider 1.18+1.19(+1.20 even) as a golden "collection of patches" but expecting to have one alone is just not realistic.

Henceforth it shall be called "The Tri-Force Patch."

Uh..oh... Nintendo?! Triforce?! Zelda?! MMO?!

Speculation?

Hmm i only see "force".. think that was a sign to just wait for SW:ToR to come out.

I apologize in advance for the brevity of this letter, but wanted to inform you all right away that we are planning to release patch 1.18 on July 21 (PST).

What date EST?

lol, good one.

Though... I guess if it's late enough on the 21 July (PST), it could actually be a different day in other timezones; maybe this is confirmation that Yoshida expects this patch to go live at 11:59 (PST).

____________________________

"... he called to himself a wizard, named Gallery, hoping by this means to escape the paying of the fifteen hundred crowns..." (Machen 15)

"Thus opium is pleasing... on account of the agreeable delirium it produces." (Burke para.6)

"I could only read so much for this paper and the syphilis poem had to go."

The SE's sh*t game community is the same as the FFXI community, minus a few hundred thousand. There have always been "downraters" and "trolls." Do not blame the community for any part of SE's sh*t game. It is not the community's responsibility to fix SE's sh*t game; we paid $60+ for SE's sh*t game and now, if they care about future business dealings, they owe us.

There won't be any significant number of newcomers until the PS3 release, if SE's sh*t game makes it that far. You are deluding yourself if you think people are being turned away by "trolls" and "downraters" and not SE's sh*t game itself.

Quote:

5. HELP NOOBS

Firstly, SE's sh*t game was originally an unintuitive, laggy mess without keybinds, a useful tutorial or an included manual that helps you past character creation. It is SE's job to make new players comfortable in their sh*t game. Telling a person to wait a month while SE un-sh*ts their sh*t game may lose a subscription, but it is the honest thing to do. We are not recruiting for a cult.

Secondly, you are a gigantic SE sycophant elitist white knight objectivist hipster jive turkey apologist samurai and I think you should go back to FFXI.

It's nice to see this kind of communication, even though it can be somewhat considered bad news.

I just can't help but wonder.. if this idea of a 'golden patch' hadn't gotten so popular, would we have seen the changes in 1.18 implemented already in smaller updates over a period of time leading up to the 21st? It seems Yoshi P is all in with this golden patch idea, meanwhile we have to wait longer for large scale updates. Maybe that's the idea and it'll bring in some good publicity, I dunno. All I know is I'm probably not logging in until the 21st.

Now I'm not quoting you to bash you not one bit... But I remember strolling through the forums and seeing people complaining about the fact that they 'are releasing a patch just to keep up with promises of quantity.' I want to say somewhere between the 1.16 and 1.17c area. I was unable to find the exact quote. The fact was that if they were releasing a little bit at a time, people were not satisfied content wise (nor the fact that they had to download every patch that has ever been in order to get a new targeting system), and were wishing they would just wait and release one big patch rather than 3 sub patches. So really the earlier criticism has paid off.

Here's a few tips for everybody that will help clear your mindset and stop turning away newcomers

1. They launched a badhorribleunfinished **** game. We know it, they know it. Get over it. It should not be a reminder at every corner for everything they do, nor should it be an excuse though either.

2. Imagine this: You are living in your home and decide you want to have it changed completely, while keeping the house the same from say, the outside. The workers come in and you let them know you will still be living in the house while they overhaul the whole house. This means that they have to do all the work slowly and meticulously, because every step would involve making sure that you can still go about your normal life. It's going to take a lot longer to move the plumbing pipes from where the bathroom used to be to where it will be.

3. Community overhaul: I don't know about most of you, but coming from ffxi, I tried Aion, EvE and Rift. All 3 were excellent games in their own respect (loved EvE). But i gave up 3 finished, great games because they lacked that community that we had in FFXI. I have watched (at least the ZAM base) dwindle to a bunch of cranky downraters and trolls. Don't forget where we come from. A community can make or break a game just as easily as poor development can.

4. Constructive feedback: They are watching us. You know... They, them. What do you do when a kid whines and complains about everything? You quit listening to the whining because you know they will always whine. If you want Yoshi to continue to listen to us, then do your part. Provide constructive criticism and feedback. Don't lose your cool if your issues aren't adressed. Simply whining will get you nowhere, and just starts flameposts.

5. HELP NOOBS: Remember how confusing your first day was in this game? I see so many posts where people are asking about the state of the game and everyone is basically saying 'wait for 1.18.' I understand the complaints about the clunky UI, the market wards, lack of things to do, ect ect. But telling a new player who is in the market for an MMO to wait a month is a good chance of losing a player. I'm not saying to white knight this game, but lets start being a little more optimistic. These forums seem more and more like a bunch of people who don't want to play the game. A big part of this game is making your connections early on with your game family that will most likely provide long term friendships. Anyone who made a new character on XI after abyssia may understand the feeling of trying to get back in the game.

Those are just a few things. Inc flames for Great Wall of Text. I generally don't post unless I feel strongly about something, not just to quick reply or flame someone. I leave that to you, the great flamers of ZAM, to sub default me for bringing up a few points of view of my own.

Now everything you said was a ok point to make but there was only one big flaw in your plan and that is to convince someone to spend 50 bucks on a game that is not in a good enough state for most of the pre-order group to still play it. Telling a player thinking about starting 14 that its bearable right now is really a lie. Most post are a bit aggressive when it comes to telling people whats wrong with the game but that's way better then having someone lie to you, you spend some money or if you own the game already blow a few hours downloading it again, just to find out is basically the same game as the it was when it launch, there is not a huge difference between launch and today's games. In my personal belief you do less damage with a hard truth then a soft lie.

The SE's sh*t game community is the same as the FFXI community, minus a few hundred thousand. There have always been "downraters" and "trolls." Do not blame the community for any part of SE's sh*t game. It is not the community's responsibility to fix SE's sh*t game; we paid $60+ for SE's sh*t game and now, if they care about future business dealings, they owe us.

There won't be any significant number of newcomers until the PS3 release, if SE's sh*t game makes it that far. You are deluding yourself if you think people are being turned away by "trolls" and "downraters" and not SE's sh*t game itself.

Quote:

5. HELP NOOBS

Firstly, SE's sh*t game was originally an unintuitive, laggy mess without keybinds, a useful tutorial or an included manual that helps you past character creation. It is SE's job to make new players comfortable in their sh*t game. Telling a person to wait a month while SE un-sh*ts their sh*t game may lose a subscription, but it is the honest thing to do. We are not recruiting for a cult.

Secondly, you are a gigantic SE sycophant elitist white knight objectivist hipster jive turkey apologist samurai and I think you should go back to FFXI.

Edit: no sense saying "firstly" if I don't add anything else

Edited, Jul 9th 2011 2:22am by Almalexia

My point right here. Thank you

You are telling me to go back to ffxi why? You are the one who obviously has HUGE problems with this game, maybe you should be the one finding a new game :) . If i wanted to play ffxi again I would. Old news. Sounds like you are the one very bitter.

XI for me is a time sink...no thanks. XIV lets me play without feeling like I've fallen behind and I still feel like I'm having fun. If I wanted a time sink of a game that I felt as if I had to give up my RL in order to enjoy...I think I would have picked up Ever Crack...no thanks...

Alma, if you hate this game so much, why not just go back to XI, hang on the XI boards instead of coming in here? I mean really...people are perfectly capable of deciding if they think this is a horrible game or not...we don't need other cr@97@$7!7 opinions....seriously... *facepalm*...that is all.

Edited, Jul 9th 2011 2:01pm by LillithaFenimore

Edited, Jul 9th 2011 2:02pm by LillithaFenimore

____________________________

"I've never watched a nuclear explosion myself. That's a couple of degrees of stupid above my limit"- Old Man Harris

At this rate there is zero chance everything on the list from letter 10(?) will be finished this summer, like Yoshi claimed it would be. I like the fact that there has been a good amount of info posted during the last couple of weeks, but that still doesn't make up for the fact that these updates are taking a ridiculous amount of time. With everything else that's planned, like jobs (mark my words, it will be 2012 before that happens), and the giant issue with the overall lameness of the maps, when will we get a finished product? Seriously, I think Yoshi must be the world's most talented puppetmaster, because he is stringing us all along quite brilliantly.

There are three possible reasons why the content updates are taking so long. The first, and most obvious (although I've begged the community for hard numbers that probably aren't available), is that SE hasn't appropriated enough resources for the current development team. The second possible reason involves the current dev team having to wade through the code written by the outsourced Chinese team, making current updates to the coding more difficult. The third reason is that they may still be attempting to prepare cross-platform code for both the PS3 (or PS4) and PC.

I've had to eat crow in the past and am not afraid to make unpopular predictions, but judging by the fact that Yoshida is trying to lower expectations these "raids" will probably end up being glorified levequests. Of particular note is the 60 minute timer, double that of a normal leve timer. Also, note the translated Yoshida quote here:

Yoshida wrote:

All that’s left is the balancing and debugging of the two instanced raids. (There’s no guarantee all future instances will fit the definition of “dungeon,” and it’d just be ridiculous and flat out wrong to call something that isn’t a dungeon a dungeon, right? But even a small party of people can raid a given location, dungeon or otherwise. Just sayin’.)

It will be interesting to see if they simply attached a raid quest to an aetherite in a given location, plopped a few mobs throughout and a couple treasure chests, and deemed it an instance raid. Given the team's track record on quest development this is not an outlandish speculation. History will be the judge.